Stem-Cell Transplantation Enables Long-Term HIV Control

A leukemia patient lost his CCR5 receptors and achieved remission of both leukemia and HIV infection.

Good drugs are available for keeping HIV at bay, but the many downsides of lifelong drug treatment (e.g., cost, side effects, access) fuel the continued search for a cure. A case report from Germany now suggests that manipulation of the CCR5 receptor is the key to long-term, drug-free virologic control.

A 40-year-old white man with longstanding HIV infection (>10 years) received a diagnosis of acute myeloid leukemia (AML). At the time, he was receiving an efavirenz-based regimen and had a CD4 count >400 cells/mm³ and an undetectable viral load. He underwent two courses of induction chemotherapy and one course of consolidation therapy, but the AML relapsed. He then underwent allogeneic stem-cell transplantation with a human leukocyte antigen–…

Reviewing Author

Abigail Zuger, MD

Disclosures

Nothing to disclose

Abigail Zuger, MD

Disclosures

Nothing to disclose

Stem-Cell Transplantation Enables Long-Term HIV Control

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Reviewing Author